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Ordo Malleus
The Ordo Malleus, whose Inquisitors are often referred to as Daemonhunters, is the sub-division of the Imperial Inquisition tasked with protecting the Imperium of Mankind from the daemonic dangers of Chaos. Along with the Ordo Hereticus (Witch Hunters) and the Ordo Xenos (Alien Hunters), the Ordo Malleus makes up the byzantine organisation that is the Inquisition. Aided by the elite psychic Grey Knights Space Marine Chapter, who serve as the Ordo Malleus' Chamber Militant, it is the task of the Inquisitors and Acolytes of the Ordo Malleus to destroy the physical manifestation of Chaos, daemons, in the physical universe as well as any other agents of Chaos who threaten both the peace and the souls of the Imperium's people. History Hector Rex of the Ordo Malleus.]] The Ordo Malleus was essentially the heart of the Inquisition, founded in the period after Horus had launched his great rebellion against the Emperor of Mankind. In the days after the crew of the Imperial frigate Eisenstein brought the news of Horus' betrayal to Terra, the Emperor requested that His regent, Malcador the Sigillite, find Him men and women of utmost loyalty to the Imperial cause who were willing to investigate threats to the Imperium from both within and without. Malcador eventually brought 12 individuals to the Emperor's notice in the days just before the Siege of Terra, 4 Imperial lords and administrators of an inquisitive bent and 8 psychically-empowered Astartes of the both the Loyalist and Traitor Legions who had remained loyal to the Emperor and served as Malcador's personal agents during the Horus Heresy, the Knights Errant. The eight Space Marines became the first Grey Knights Grand Masters while the four mortals founded what became the Inquisition proper. However, the division of the Inquisition that would become known as the "Ordo Malleus" was not officially formed until the mid-32nd Millennium, centuries after the end of the Horus Heresy in the wake of the War of the Beast. The Ordo Malleus was one of the two original ordos of the Inquisition, the other being the Ordo Xenos, created following that great conflict against the Orks to ensure that the Imperium never again nearly fell to an assault by xenos. Where the Inquisitors of the Ordo Xenos concentrate on defeating the many threats that aliens presented to human domination of the galaxy, the Inquisitors of what slowly evolved into the Ordo Malleus remained focused on the Inquisition's original mission of countering the insidious threat of Chaos and the daemons of the Warp. Since its inception, the Ordo Malleus has concerned itself with the constant threat of daemonic incursion and Chaos corruption that faces the Imperium. For thousands of Terran years it has waged a covert war for humanity's continued survival against the insidious infernal forces of the Ruinous Powers of Chaos. Role An Ordo Malleus Inquisitor is sanctioned to call on the aid of any organisation of the Imperium. The greatest threat to humanity in the galaxy, that of a daemonic invasion of a planet, can only be dealt with by the Grey Knights, the Ordo Malleus' own Chamber Militant. The Ordo Malleus -- besides being the Daemonhunters of the Imperium -- is the secretive inner and first order of the Inquisition. It is controlled by a council of 169 Inquisitor Lords called "Masters." The ordo's organisation is divided into "chambers," each controlled by an Inquisitor Lord called a "Proctor." The number of Inquisitors in each chamber can vary from a few score to hundreds. Being a division of the Inquisition, the Ordo Malleus consists of exceptional individuals who have been involved in a covert war for Mankind's continued survival for the last ten thousand standard years. As every Inquisitor has sworn oaths to defend the Imperium from its worst enemies, the members of the Ordo Malleus are concerned with eliminating the physical manifestation of Chaos itself. They have pledged their existence to the discovery and elimination of the daemonic threat to humanity, no matter where they are found. The Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus have at their disposal every resource of the Imperium of Man and will not hesitate to requisition local troops at a moment's notice. The Ordo Malleus goes to great lengths to hide the existence of Chaos and its servants from the greater masses of Mankind as they fear such knowledge might only increase the number of individuals who fall prey to the corruption of the Dark Gods. As such, on those rare occasions when the Ordo Malleus is mentioned by name, it is referred to as the watchdog of the Inquisition itself, though its actual purpose as the Imperium's elite Daemonhunters is known only to those within its employ as Acolytes and Throne Agents. Within the Inquisition, the Ordo Malleus forms a secret order that is tasked with the very specific role of serving as the Imperium's primary Daemonhunters. As such, it is their duty to root out all sources of daemonic activity and to combat such forces in whatever form they take. This means that only the most mentally stalwart and physically able of Inquisitors are tasked to this duty. Their missions can see them engage their foes either in hand-to-hand fighting or battle them in the realm of mental energy which requires special abilities and powers. This means that the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus are usually psykers and those who lack such abilities must possess tremendous mental resolve. As they are a highly classified group, the identities of Ordo Malleus Inquisitors are kept secret. When members of the ordo must appear in public in the course of their investigations, they are allowed to adopt the uniforms of various other Imperial Adepta that hide their features and allows them to keep their true identities a secret. Only the Emperor and the cyber-libraries of the Ordo Malleus possess a truly accurate recounting of the events of the Horus Heresy. Among the targets of the Ordo Malleus are the Chaos Space Marines of the Traitor Legions, covens consisting of Chaos worshippers and Renegade psykers and the Sensei who are seen as a threat to the Imperium. It is known that certain Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus have been allowed entry into the Aeldari's Black Library and have gained more knowledge of the Archenemy than almost any other human save for the Emperor Himself. The power and authority of the Ordo Malleus extends beyond the nominal boundaries of the Inquisition, a jurisdictional extension known as the Malleus Remit. In events of grave emergency concerning potential daemonic threats, a Malleus Inquisitor may demand the services and resources of any Imperial servant or organisation, a request which may not be refused on pain of death. Even the High Lords of Terra and the Adeptus Astartes are beholden to follow the Malleus Remit without hesitation when it is invoked, a responsibility laid down at the end of the Horus Heresy by the Emperor's decree. Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus were also permanently seconded to the Cadian military due to that now lost world's proximity to the Eye of Terror, making its inhabitants susceptible to the influence of Chaos. In normal circumstances, the Ordo Malleus focuses its investigations toward two primary threats: *'The Daemon Without': The most obvious threat is that of daemons who have physically manifested in the material universe and those mortals dedicated to the service of Chaos in all its forms. *'The Daemon Within': The less obvious threat is an internal one, including Radical Inquisitors who have been declared Extremis Diabolus for heretical actions in which they adopted the use of the tactics and artefacts of Chaos to fight the servants of the Archenemy. Organisation The Ordo Malleus is led by the Inquisitor Lords known as the "Hidden Masters." Unlike the other ordos of the Inquisition, the Ordo Malleus has a more rigid and formalised hierarchical structure. It is controlled by a council of 169 Inquisitor Lords known as Masters, all of whom have the right to have a direct audience with the Emperor Himself within the inner sanctum of the Imperial Palace if they so request. Their authority even extends to the Inquisitorial Representative to the Senatorum Imperialis, some of whom have been tried and executed by the Masters of the ordo in times past. Below the Masters are the Inquisitors known as the Proctors and Proctors Minor, with each being responsible for the leadership of a Chamber Practical of the Ordo. The Chambers Practical themselves are named after their founding Proctor and serve as the basic unit of the Ordo Malleus. Inquisitors Ordinary form the rank and file of the ordo whilst there exists a parallel organisation called the "Chambers Theoretical and Historical" that consist of agents known as Inquisitors Historical. Inquisitors Historical are drawn from the older members of the ordo who are unable to continue their active service either due to ill-health, injury or infirmity. Instead, they are assigned research and data collation projects at the Inquisitorial and Administratum Libraries. Within the Chambers, there are perhaps only a few hundred Inquisitors Ordinary and Historical in total across the galaxy. The Chambers Theoretical and Historical for their part possess in total only a few score members that are engaged in research and disputation whilst the Chambers Practical are comprised of hundreds of Inquisitors who are responsible for operating the various sector conclaves of the Ordo Malleus in the field. The Ordo Malleus works directly under the Emperor's Warrant and thus has a completely free hand in its operations. This means that an Inquisitor Ordinary of this ordo is able to demand anything they see fit from any Adepta or armed service of the Imperium in order to accomplish their duty with no explanation being offered. Any Imperial servant that meets with an Ordo Malleus Inquisitor must comply and obey their command. The most common demand made by Malleus Inquisitors is for troops to support their operations, though such forces rarely survive in the service of an Inquisitor Ordinary. This is not necessarily viewed as a problem by the Inquisitor, however, as they would be forced to mind-wipe or otherwise eliminate those troops who have served them and been exposed to the realities of Chaos. However, high public honours are given to those Imperial units that are attached to the Ordo Malleus should they die in the service of the Inquisition, though the campaigns upon which these honours are earned remained sealed in the archives of the ordos. Members of the Ordo Malleus tend to favour simple yet sinister uniforms with black, loose-fitting habits over their armour along with large hoods that hide their features in shadow. Graphic electoos are an unofficial yet traditional addition to this uniform for many Malleus Inquisitors as their glowing appearance beneath the skin adds a disturbing quality to the appearance of these Inquisitors which they find useful in seeking to intimidate outsiders with an air of menace and mystery. By tradition, Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus tend to have one electoo for each coven of witches or Heretics that they have discovered and cleansed. As such, for the oldest Malleus Inquisitors it is not uncommon for elaborate electoo designs to be enscribed all across their body. The designs of these electoos have been fixed for generations, with the symbols intended to recall in a stylised manner each of the various daemons and other Chaos foes that the Inquisitor has faced and defeated. The rarely seen or used badge of the Ordo Malleus takes the form of the Imperial Aquila holding a rod and an axe in each talon which is worn either on the shoulder or on the right breast. Masters and Proctors of the Ordo Malleus are always psykers who carry Force Rods as a symbol of their authority, though in combat engagements this is often supplemented with a Power Weapon of the Inquisitor's choice. Malleus Investigations Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus and their Acolytes face the greatest threat to humanity's existence: Chaos and the daemons of the Warp. The Dark Gods of Chaos are the Archenemies of Mankind; the Ruinous Powers and their daemons seek to bring the veil crashing down and undo reality as we know it, plunging the galaxy into the madness of the Warp. Although insidious heretics seek to undermine the Imperium from within and alien abominations attack from without, the daemons of the Immaterium whisper their lies from beyond the fabric of reality. Yet, when the veil is rent asunder, daemons invade in a great tide, slaughtering and unleashing cataclysmic destruction. Few warriors can even face such a foe without succumbing to terror and madness, and even mere knowledge of such entities is restricted. Only the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus and their Acolytes possess the knowledge, strength of will, and tools to stand against the daemon. Beyond Reality Although daemons pose an almost inconceivable threat to Mankind, they face certain limitations. Chief amongst these is the difficulty daemons have manifesting and remaining in the material universe. Without the psychic energy of the Warp to sustain them, daemons are able to maintain a corporeal form for only so long. Breaching the veil and entering reality in the first place is only possible under certain circumstances. These limitations mean that the bulk of the Ordo Malleus' work consists not of banishing daemons back to the Warp, but preventing their arrival in the first place. Some daemons are so apocalyptically powerful that there is no hope of defeating them in battle, and the only way to save a world or star system is to ensure the daemon does not manifest. For a daemon to manifest, the barrier between reality and the Warp must be weakened and broken. There are a number of ways this can come about, both due to the actions of mortals and the vagaries of the Warp. Even a Sanctioned Psyker risks opening a gateway to the Warp with each use of their powers, and for this reason some members of the Ordo Malleus share the same anti-psyker views as the most hard-line Witch Hunters. Malefic cults often seek to summon daemons, either to enact the cult's aims or as a simple act of devotion to the Dark Gods. The very movements of the Warp, perhaps fed by the emotions of mortals, disturbed by the activities of psykers, or set in motion aeons ago, can in rare cases push against the veil of reality until it tears open. What all these potentialities share is either a Warp rift that allows Daemons to manifest physical forms in reality, or the possession of a mortal host body. It is not necessary, however, for a daemon to manifest in reality in order to threaten humanity. Daemons communicate with mortals from the depths of the Warp, and psykers are particularly susceptible to these whispers and visions. Often, such contact is the precursor to the daemon entering reality, as it establishes a link in order to corrupt and possess a mortal, or instructs the mortal in the ways of its summoning. There are many reasons a mortal might fall to a daemon's temptation. A lust for power, wealth, adoration, revenge -- all of these and more are mortal weaknesses a daemon might exploit. Even if the interaction does not lead to the daemon's emergence in the physical universe, a mortal under daemonic influence might undertake all manner of evil deeds. Powerful psykers and influential figures can cause untold damage, igniting wars and leading star systems -- even entire sectors -- into eternal damnation. The Servants of the Enemy Because of the nature of daemons, the early stages of Ordo Malleus investigations often deal with mortals in thrall to daemons. In many cases, a successful mission might mean preventing a Chaos Cult from summoning a daemon, or destroying a rogue psyker before he succumbs to possession. In this way, the work of the Ordo Malleus overlaps with that of the Ordo Hereticus. However, while Inquisitors of the Ordo Hereticus focus on the traitors and witches themselves, the servants of the Ordo Malleus concern themselves always with the true threat of the daemon. Better to prevent that threat from materialising, but if the worst does happen, the warriors of the Ordo Malleus possess the knowledge and tools to fight against the daemonic. The servants of the Ordo Malleus must often investigate secretive Chaos Cults with aspirations to summon daemons, or even plunge worlds into the Warp. Depending on the nature of the enemy and the preferred methods of a warband, this might entail infiltrating a cult in order to learn the threat it poses and even uncover its dark secrets in order to turn such knowledge against other enemies. Other Inquisitors might conscript local armed forces in order to flush out the heretics and launch a full-scale assault on their compound. There are many heretics who unknowingly threaten to bring daemons into reality. Although a scholar of forbidden lore might not think himself a devotee of Chaos, by opening his mind to the secrets of the Warp, he draws the attentions of its denizens. A noble dilettante who collects Warp-touched artefacts might unwittingly release the power they contain and open a Warp rift. Guardsmen of the Astra Militarum and even Space Marines who enter battle against the forces of Chaos, and particularly against incarnate daemons, risk corruption that might, if unchecked, transform them into the very enemy they battled against. Battle and Banishment All too often, Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus or their Acolytes are too late to stop a daemonic summoning, or a Warp rift might open without warning. Sometimes, an Inquisitorial warband's first indication that there is a threat comes from the presence of daemons, whether scheming in the shadows or slaughtering in the habways. When daemons step foot in the material universe, it is the sacred duty of the Ordo Malleus to banish them back to the Immaterium. Often, once a daemon is manifest in reality, only inflicting great damage to its corporeal form can disrupt its hold enough to return it to the Warp. For this reason, combat can be a major part of Ordo Malleus investigations. Daemons are the most dangerous and horrifying foes imaginable, and even for veteran Daemonhunters, each encounter is a momentous experience. Not only are daemons powerful adversaries that evince a host of strange Warp-spawned abilities, but their mere presence can taint the soul and shatter the minds of hardened warriors. Because of this, Inquisitors and Acolytes often cannot count on local forces for aid in combat, as few are likely to possess the strength of will necessary to overcome their fear in the face of daemonic foes. In order to successfully battle daemons, Acolytes must not only be capable combatants, but strong enough of will to maintain their composure. Heavy weapons and sanctified blades are of no use if the warriors fall apart in the presence of the horrific enemy. Military Forces The direct military forces employed by the Ordo Malleus are small, as only a select few individuals are trusted by the Inquisition with extensive knowledge of Chaos. Daemonhunter strike forces usually consist only of a Malleus Inquisitor, the Inquisitor's personal retinue of Acolytes and Throne Agents, and as many Grey Knights as can be spared if the threat is unusually potent. In battle, the greatest advantage of any Ordo Malleus force lies in the specialised and consecrated weaponry available to it. Utilising techniques and metallurgy lost to the rest of the Imperium, Malleus savants and allied Adeptus Mechanicus Tech-priests produce and maintain immensely powerful arms and armour specifically designed to combat daemons, Chaos Space Marines, Chaos Sorcerers, rogue psykers and other Warp entities. In addition to this equipment, the Malleus Remit allows any Daemonhunter strike force to be bolstered by units from the Adeptus Astartes, the Imperial Guard, and the Officio Assassinorum. Only the ranks of the Grey Knights are expected to survive in the service to the Ordo Malleus. All other troops that are seconded to the Ordo Malleus often see their lives expended so as to better prevent them from later being corrupted by Chaos. Even seconded Space Marines will be subjected to a mind-wipe if no other sanction is taken. Those troops seconded to the missions of the Ordo malleus inevitably become privy to one of the Imperium's most closely guarded secrets -- the existence of Chaos as a potent, sentient force within the Warp and of the entities rightly called "daemons" who serve the Dark Gods. As their duty is to keep this threat contained and hidden from the citizens of the Imperium, the Ordo Malleus will often execute any troops that survive an encounter with daemons or other tell-tale Warp entities. At a minimum, such troops will be mind-wiped and even sterilised to prevent the taint of Chaos from creating mutants from amongst their offspring. Those slain in battle or even as a result of the Inquisition's orders always receive full honours shortly after their death or execution. Ultimately, all other servants of the Emperor, including other Inquisitors, are seen as expendable in the pursuit of the destruction of humanity's Archenemy. The exceptions to this secrecy-by-extermination policy are units seconded by the Adeptus Astartes since the execution of a Space Marine is a terrible waste of Imperial resources due to the sheer difficulty of creating these transhuman warriors. Those Astartes serving with the Ordo Malleus are mindscrubbed immediately after their service is completed in order to remove any memory of the Ordo Malleus' existence and operational protocols. Ultimately, only the Grey Knights are allowed to retain their memories of their duty with the Ordo Malleus as their centuries of service have proven again and again that they are incorruptible in the face of the temptations of Chaos. Inquisitorial Storm Troopers .]] Trained from their youth by the Schola Progenium in the arts of war, Storm Troopers are, perhaps, the finest soldiers ever to serve with the Astra Militarum. Armed with their trademark Hellguns and Hellpistols, these soldiers take combat to the heart of the enemy with blinding speed and deadly precision. Their accuracy is aided by their highly-protective Carapace Armour's integrated targeting system. Equipped with the finest weapons and wargear in the Departmento Munitorum's arsenal, Storm Troopers are trained to carry out missions beyond the capabilities of the rank-and-file Guardsmen. Should a sponsored candidate survive the gruelling regime of harsh training, he eventually becomes an Imperial Storm Trooper or Tempestus Scion. However, Storm Trooper candidates sponsored by the Inquisition are not meant to join a proper Storm Trooper unit, nor to deploy with the Imperial Guard. Instead, these Storm Troopers, with their training complete, are taken by their sponsor to serve a higher purpose -- a permanent place on an Inquisitor's retinue of Acolytes and Throne Agents. The Inquisition maintains a string of fortresses scattered throughout the galaxy, some hidden, some extremely well-known and the object of numerous dark legends. Inquisitorial Storm Troopers are also used by the Inquisition to guard these fortresses and the Black Ships and Inquisitorial Black Ships as they make their purity runs across the Imperium's sectors, as well as to augment an individual Inquisitor's personal forces with reliable and effective soldiers. Inquisitorial Storm Troopers are selected from families with a record of unwavering faith in the Emperor and prior duty to the Inquisition. They are trained and equipped in a manner similar to standard Tempestus Scions, albeit lacking the rapid insertion and infiltration skills, as they are not expected to undertake such types of missions. Such activities are more often carried out for the Inquisition by the Officio Assassinorum. Grey Knights of the Grey Knights armed with their trademark wrist-mounted Bolter and Nemesis Force Weapon halberd.]] The Grey Knights are a mysterious Loyalist Chapter of Space Marines specifically tasked with combating the dangerous daemonic entities of the Warp and all who wield the corrupt power of the Chaos Gods. Legend has it that the Grey Knights were founded on the order of the Emperor Himself, in the final days of the Horus Heresy. Though the Chapter's origins are uncertain in many details, it is known that the Emperor ordered the creation of a force specifically mandated to fight Chaos after the onset of the galaxy-wide rebellion. This organisation, which was eventually named the Imperial Inquisition, was to include a branch of specialised warriors, as the Heresy demonstrated that a powerful military force was necessary to fight the daemonic minions of Chaos. The Grey Knights act as the military arm or Chamber Militant of the Ordo Malleus, the Daemonhunters who form the oldest branch of the virtually omnipotent Inquisition. The Grey Knights' fortress-monastery is based on Titan, the largest of the moons of the gas giant Saturn in the Sol System, that is kept as a private preserve of the Inquisition. The existence of the Chapter is virtually unknown outside of the Inquisition and the highest echelons of the Imperial Adepta, and is a well-guarded secret. Unlike other Astartes, every Grey Knight is a potent psyker. Yet, in the 10,000 standard years of Imperial history, no Grey Knight has ever been corrupted by the Ruinous Powers of Chaos, so pure is their gene-seed and so potent their psychic conditioning and faith in the Emperor. Notable Ordo Malleus Members Below are listed individuals notable for directly serving alongside the Inquisitors of the Ordo Malleus. For notable Grey Knights please see the Grey Knights' own page. *'Inquisitor Ahmazzi' - Ahmazzi is the Spectarians’ sole Ordo Malleus Inquisitor. He is a grizzled and ancient veteran, close on three hundred standard years old, whose career has taken him from Titan to the very edges of the Imperium, hunting down daemons and the corrupt humans who summon them. Now all but decrepit, he has come to the Calixis Sector to, as he puts it, “bask in the radiance of the Tyrant Star and learn its secrets.” A long career has left Ahmazzi intensely cynical and pessimistic. He has come to believe that the Emperor is dead, Chaos cannot be stopped and the human race is doomed. The Imperium, Ahmazzi believes, is a grotesque symptom of the fact that the human race is currently living through its inevitable and drawn-out extinction. He has dabbled with Radicalism in his career, even being declared Excommunicate by Puritan colleagues for seeking out daemonic knowledge but no one in the Tyrantine Cabal other than Zerbe knows this. Ahmazzi has no friends and does not particularly care what people think of him, angrily refusing to tell any stories of his astonishing daemonhunting career, although an Acolyte who displays great courage in the face of a daemonic foe might win Ahmazzi’s grudging respect. Ahmazzi was a martially-minded Inquisitor in his prime and secretly would love nothing better than to mount up on his mobile war pulpit, don his armour and take up his Daemonhammer to ride into battle once more against a horde of daemonic foes. He believes that the Tyrant Star maybe the harbinger of Man’s inevitable doom and he wants to be at ground zero to witness the great day when it happens. *'Inquisitor Lord Torquemada Coteaz' - Torquemada Coteaz gained his reputation for being a fearsome Daemonhunter through years of action against the Forces of Chaos. He is now known as the High Protector of the Formosa Sector. With his power and popularity, he is served by literally thousands of Acolytes and Throne Agents, and he arms himself with rare weapons like his Anointed Daemonhammer, Artificer Power Armour, a Glovodan Eagle, and various potent relics of the Inquisition. *'Inquisitor Covenant' - Covenant is one of a new breed of Daemonhunters who hunts down traitorous members of the Inquisition itself and their Daemonhosts. He trained the Inquisitor Ivixia Dannica. Covenant is equipped with a Power Falchion, a Psycannon and limited psychic powers. *'Daemonhuntress Ivixia Dannica' - After her father Colonel Dannica was murdered by a daemon summoned by Chaos Cultists who wanted revenge for the purge he enacted on them and their brethren, Ivixia was trained by Inquisitor Covenant. She had her father's skull fitted with an Autogun and embedded within her armour so he could serve the Emperor beyond death. She wields a Power Halberd made from the shards of Saint Josmane's armour. The weapon is filled with the power of the Imperial Saint and has sent scores of daemons screaming back into the depths of the Warp. *'Inquisitor Lord Ghankus Dhar' - Ghankus Dar is one of the leaders of the Ordo Malleus in the Calixian Conclave of the Calixis Sector. Dhar serves as the current Proctor of the Scholariate at Arms for the Calixian Malleus. *'Inquisitor Phaedus Falconet Horst' - Horst was an Inquisitor of the Ordo Malleus who played major supporting roles in the Gothic War, the First and Second War for Armageddon and Inquisitor Katarinya Greyfax's quest to find the artefact known as the Eye of Night. This device had originally assisted Abaddon the Despoiler in gaining control of the Blackstone Fortresses during the Gothic War, and was sought by Greyfax after 999.M41 in an attempt to aid Primarch Roboute Guilliman in learning how to seal the Great Rift created across the Imperium in the wake of the 13th Black Crusade. Horst was known to be a psyker of some power. *'Inquisitor Jaq Draco' - Jaq Draco was a secret Inquisitor of the Ordo Malleus, active in the late 38th and early 39th Millennia. He purportedly uncovered a widespread conspiracy involving numerous high-ranking members of the Inquisition known as the Ordo Hydra, as well as highly sensitive information regarding the Emperor. Draco proved instrumental in stopping a plot by the Ordo Hydra to psychically enslave Mankind in the hope of striking a blow that would eliminate Chaos from the galaxy forever. In reality, the plan very likely would have spawned a fifth Chaos God who would have guaranteed the ultimate victory of Chaos over the Imperium of Man. In the course of his mission Jaq Draco became one of the few individuals in the galaxy to have entered the Emperor's Sanctum Imperialis to have an audience with the Emperor of Mankind since his internment in the Golden Throne at the end of the Horus Heresy. It is also said that he was the only human to ever penetrate the fabled Black Library, their secret Craftworld within the Webway, that contains the entire race's knowledge concerning Chaos, without the Eldar's consent. He was declared Renegade by the Inquisition, and he was reported to have died within the Webway in the early 39th Millennium under mysterious circumstances. Draco was known to have a retinue consisting of a Navigator, an Assassin and a Squat. He was reported to be a formidable psyker. *'Inquisitor Octus Enoch' - Octus Enoch is an Ordo Malleus Inquisitor of the Calixian Conclave of the Calixis Sector and a member of the Scholariate at Arms. He holds the title "Prognost Pursuant", and his primary mission is to hunt down prophesies relating to future daemonic incursions. Once he has found a true prophecy foretelling an incursion, and has interpreted it, he dispatches a cell of Acolytes to ensure that it does not come about; whatever the cost in doing so. To this end, Octus employs a huge household, with a mix of Imperial Adepts and more militant Acolytes. The Adepts, drawn from the Administratum and the Adeptus Mechanicus, are tasked with poring through thousands upon thousands of tomes of prophecy, prognostication, and sometimes pure gibberish, and the others work in the field according to their master’s instructions. The Inquisitor rarely takes to the field himself, although he has done so in the past, most notably when he bound the daemon Nahterus into a Daemonhost and imprisoned it within a shuttle orbiting a dead star. Instead, Octus presides over his many Acolyte cells, dispatching them across the entire Calixis Sector to disrupt the dark prophecies identified by his Adepts. *'Inquisitor Silas Hand' - Silas Hand was at first a Witch Hunter serving under the Ordos Solar in the Segmentum Solar who eliminated thousands of Heretics. After being approached by an important Daemonhunter, Inquisitor Lord Hephaestos Grudd, he was invited to join the Ordo Malleus. Inquisitor Hand was sent to Ophelia VII to identify if Battle-Sister Ephrael Stern was tainted by Chaos. Mysteriously, she was the sole survivor out of 12,000 Imperial Guardsmen who had been sent to the planet Parnis. His investigation led to no conclusion, and Hand was forced to return with her to the planet Parnis. During the journey, their vessel's Navigator was possessed by Chaos and destroyed their starship, the Hammer of Thor. Escaping, both Hand and Stern were able to land upon the surface of Parnis. However, they soon confronted the Daemon Q'tlahsi'issho'akshami. Once again, only Stern managed to survive the ensuing battle. *'Inquisitor Jason Hunt' - Jason Hunt was an Ordo Malleus Inquisitor and Warden of the Stromgard Sector. Hunt is closely affiliated with Commander Marcus Flintlock of the Storm Dragons Space Marine Chapter, and has used detachments of that force frequently in pursuit of his missions. He is also a potent high-level psyker. *'Lord Inquisitor Barbillus' - Barbillus was an Inquisitor active during the 41st Millennium. A warrior first and foremost, Barbillus was the very exemplar of an Inquisitor of the Ordo Malleus: stern, reliable, devoted to his holy mission and utterly remorseless. From the height of his war pulpit, Lord Inquisitor Barbillus had battled countless daemons, smiting them with his heavy warhammer, forged from meteoritic iron and protected by golden Power Armour depicting daemons being crushed under the Emperor's heels. Whenever Imperial citizens heard rumours of the secretive Ordo Malleus, they imagined men like Barbillus. Barbillus' deeds were great and many: the purge of the Rhanna nobility, the destruction of the criminal empire of K'Sharr the Butcher, and the Cleansing of Gerentulan Minor count amongst his most famous deeds, as did his final death fighting the Daemon Prince Malygrymm the Bloodstained on the Agri-world of Agnarrson's Hold. It is still unknown if the venerable Inquisitor died at the hands of the Daemon Prince or in the fires of the Exterminatus he had ordered himself should he fail to banish the daemon, but his martyrdom elevated Babillus above his contemporaries. Barbillus' name was inscribed on the walls of the Hall of Heroes within the Imperial Palace and countless statues were erected in his honour, both within Inquisitorial fortresses of the Segmentum Solar and without. Lastly, the name of Barbillus has somehow been tainted by the actions of one of his former acolytes, Renegade Inquisitor Gholic Ren-Sar Valinov. *'Lord Inquisitor Hiram Ntshona' - Hiram Ntshona is the last survivor of the Ordo Malleus Chamber Apollyon, formerly tasked with the scrutiny and safeguarding of the now revoked Orpheus Sector. This span of the Segmentum Tempestus had always been known for its turbulent warp-tides and thus the Ordos Chamber Apollyon had gained much experience in the fight against the denizens of the Warp. Yet it would be Ntshona lack of judgement that would allow for the catastrophic Orphean War to ravage the Orpheus Sector and cause its downfall. The experienced Lord Inquisitor had falsely interpreted the devastation wrought by the awakening Maynarkh Dynasty of the Necron as a prelude to a far greater Chaotic incursion. Being a close advisor to the Sector's Governor, Calibron Laan, Ntshona stalled every offensive gathering of Imperial forces, and did not pass on the knowledge he possessed to his colleagues in the Ordo Xenos, whom might have seen the signs of their impending doom. Lord Inquisitor Ntshona's ultimate fate following the Battle of Amarah remains uncertain. *'Renegade Inquisitor Quixos' - Originally a devout member of the Ordo Malleus, Quixos' destiny was forever changed after he was wounded by a Daemon on the world of Lackan XV. Part of the abomination's claw had become lodged in Quixos' heart, and this fragment gave Quixos a link to the Warp he had never before known. Quixos soon began investigating how he might put the powers of the Warp to his own uses. Over successive centuries, Quixos became ever more deeply caught up in occult study and the use of Chaos. He bound the Daemon Kharnagar into a sword he then took as his personal weapon, stole the Malus Codicium from the Library of Othella on Zandrini Prime, created Daemonhosts, and built up a vast network of catspaws and puppets throughout the Inquisition and the broader Imperium. Yet though Quixos was arguably falling into damnation, it was in the hope of achieving a great good -– chiefly harnessing the energies of the Cadian Pylons in order to close the Eye of Terror. Alas, his methods grew ever more extreme, and brought him into increasingly frequent contact -– and conflict -– with more puritanical Inquisitors. In the end, Quixos' plans fell into dust when fellow Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn at last slew him in single combat at Farness Beta. To date, no other has attempted to replicate Quixos' designs. Until they do, it will be impossible to say whether Quixos was motivated by genius or Warp-touched insanity. *'Lord Inquisitor Hector Rex' - Hector Rex is an Ordo Malleus Inquisitor and was the Lord Proctor of the Scarus Conclave of the Inquisition in the Scarus Sector during the Siege of Vraks. Inquisitor Rex is a highly regarded Imperial hero and bears the title Auditorii Imperator, having been one of the few individuals that has been admitted within the Sanctum Imperialis into the presence of the God-Emperor. *'Inquisitrice Brei Ligeia' - Initially recruited by the Ordo Hereticus from one of the many noble houses of Gathalamor, Inquisitrice Brei Ligeia was recruited into the Ordo Malleus for her unparallelled skill at decrypting and processing ancient texts. In this, she was greatly aided by her growing psychic powers as an infocyte, capable of gleaning information from any document by merely touching it. A scholar and an investigator more than a warrior, Inquisitrice Ligeia would prove most valuable in the successful hunt and capture of the Renegade Inquisitor Gholic Ren-Sar Valinov and the identification of Valinov's true master, the Greater Daemon Ghargatuloth, the Prince of a Thousand Faces. Charged with preventing this powerful lieutenant of Tzeentch from manifesting in realspace, Brei Ligeia was despatched to the Trail of Saint Evisser, an almost forgotten corner of the Segmentum Solar, to investigate several leads. What she uncovered made for a truly terrifying picture: for ten thousand standard years, Ghargatuloth had been orchestrating his return. Almost every world within the Trail of Saint Evisser had been touched by him, many of his cults even masquerading as the local Imperial authorities without the knowledge of the Inquisition. For reasons best left unknown, Inquisitrice Brei Ligeia was declared Excommunicate Traitoris by her fellow Inquisitors after one of her Death Cultists helped the Renegade Gholic Ren-Sar Valinov escape his rightful judgment. Arrested by the Grey Knights, Inquisitrice Ligeia did not resist but was deemed too corrupted by the knowledge she had gained to warrant anything less than execution. However, as would only be discovered far too late, Ligeia had not been corrupted by the power of Chaos. Her psychic powers had allowed her to learn Ghargatuloth's true name, thus enabling Justicar Alaric of the Grey Knights to banish the daemon from the material realm for a further one thousand standard years and add its name to the Codicium Aeternum. *'Inquisitor Suresya' - A veteran Daemon Hunter and long-serving member of the Scholariate of arms. As a Xanthite Inquisitor, Suresya's Radical methods have earned him the condemnation of dozens of fellow Inquisitors, especially Puritans, but so far he has avoided formal censure. This is highly successful, but also due to the governing principels of the Scholariate at Arms, which enforce an uneasy truce between peers with widely divergent beliefs. Suresya has been instrumental in purging many widespread conspiracies and cults, and has halted several potentially devastating daemonic incursions. Suresya rarely undertakes missions alongside other Inquisitors, although he will cooperate in the early stages of an investigation if circumstances dictate. However, the final execution of any mission is always undertaken exclusively by Suresya and his followers. None outside his household have ever witnessed the methods he uses to such great effect in the banishment of the enemies of Mankind. *'Inquisitor Mordecai Toth' - Mordecai Toth was the Inquisitor dispatched by the Ordo Malleus to the world of Tartarus to warn the Blood Ravens Space Marine Chapter about the Warp Storm that was about to hit the planet and to ensure that the Forces of Chaos operating on that doomed world were found and purged. Toth initially suspected the Blood Ravens' Force Commander on Tartarus, Captain Gabriel Angelos of the 3rd Company, of being tainted by the Ruinous Powers due to the commander's stubborn refusal to flee in the face of the arrival of Chaos forces from the Alpha Legion on the planet, which Toth perceived to be a symptom of Angelos becoming overly obsessed and enamoured with Chaos. He did not suspect the true traitor, the Blood Ravens' Librarian Isador Akios, until it was too late. He helped the Blood Ravens purge Chaos from Tartarus and even gave Gabriel his Daemonhammer -- Godsplitter, which had been forged from a fragment of an Eldar Avatar of Khaine's sword. It was with this same weapon that Captain Angelos, in an attempt to destroy the artefact of Chaos found on the world called the Maledictum, unintentionally released a powerful Greater Daemon of Khorne from its prison within the object where it had been trapped following a battle with the Eldar of Biel-Tan Craftworld for many millennia. During the course of the Blood Ravens campaign on Tartarus, it was discovered that Inquisitor Toth had actually been present on the planet before the initial Ork invasion that had called the Space Marines to the world; presumably Toth was there trying to find the Maledictum before it could fall into the hands of the servants of Chaos. Inquisitorial Relics *''Grimoire of True Names'' - He who knows a Daemon's true name wields a terrible power over the beast, for it is the one verity that a Warp-spawn cannot deny. Accordingly, Grimoires of True Names are highly sought after by Daemon hunters, regardless of whether they intend to obliterate the Daemon, or bend it to their will. Alas, most are copies, with their information incomplete or subtly altered in such a way to put the reader at risk of damnation. Only one, the Malefact Maloreum, contains a complete and unswerving record of all the Dark Gods' daemonic servants. As such, it is highly sought after – and often fought over. Sources *''Bloodquest'' (Graphic Novel Series), "Mausoleum" *''Codex: Daemonhunters'' (3rd Edition) *''Codex: Eldar'' (2nd Edition) *''Codex: Eye of Terror'' (3rd Edition) *''Codex: Grey Knights'' (5th Edition) *''Codex Imperialis'' *''Codex: Inquisition'' (6th Edition), pp. 12-14, 18, 30, 37, 47, 55, 99, 105, 131, 141, 165 *''Dark Heresy: Ascencion'' (RPG), pp. 173-174 *''Dark Heresy: Daemon Hunters'' (RPG), pp. 28, 32 *''Dark Heresy: Enemies Beyond'' (2nd Edition) (RPG), pp. 139-140 *''Eye of Night'' (Audiobook) by Gav Thorpe *''Horus Heresy – Volume IV: Visions of Death'' (Forge World Series) by Alan Merrett *''Index Astartes II'', "Purge the Unclean - The Grey Knights and Deathwatch Chapters" *''Imperial Armour – Volume Twelve : The Fall of Orpheus'', pg. 28 *''Realm of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness,'' pp. 240, 246-247 *''The Inquisition'' (Background Book) * Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War (PC Game) *''White Dwarf'' 279 (US), "Codicium Imperialis: The First Battle for Armageddon" by Graham McNeill and Andy Hoare *''White Dwarf'' 260 (AUS) (2001), "Index Astartes - Purge the Unclean" *''White Dwarf'' 259 (US), "Index Astartes: Purge the Unclean, the Grey Knights & Deathwatch Chapters" *''White Dwarf'' 114 (US), "Grey Knight Terminator Squads: Space Marine Chapter 666", pp. 11-14 *''Grey Knights (Novel Series): **''Grey Knights (Novel) by Ben Counter **''Dark Adeptus'' (Novel) by Ben Counter **''The Hammer of Daemons'' (Novel) by Ben Counter *''Hunt for Voldorius'' (Novel) by Andy Hoare *''Malleus'' (Novel) by Dan Abnett *''The Chapter's Due'' (Novel) by Graham McNeill *''The Emperor's Gift'' (Novel) by by Aaron Demski-Bowden Gallery File:Ahmazzi-big.jpg|Inquisitor Ahmazzi of the Ordo Malleus File:Daemonhunter.jpg|Inquisitor Lord Torquemada Coteaz in combat against the Forces of Chaos File:Inquisitor_Jaq_Draco.jpg|Inquisitor Jaq Draco es:Ordo Malleus Category:O Category:Imperial Ordo Category:Imperium Category:Inquisitors Category:Inquisition Category:Ordo Malleus